Construction, deployment and operation of a large-scale communications system is a massive endeavor. Communication system capacity planning is required to efficiently accommodate communication system usage trends with consideration, among other things, of the potential discrepancy between peak and average data rates. In the case of a wireless communication network, for example, the potential discrepancy between peak and average data rates can by affected by various factors, such as the number of wireless devices connecting to an access node, a number of sectors in an access node service area, and the demand for services in the communication system.
Data traffic in a communications system is typically passed through intermediate networks in the communication system. An intermediate network of a communications system comprises intermediate links between and among devices, network elements, and/or networks or sub-networks of the communication system. Examples of an intermediate network include a network backhaul, intermediate links between a core network and subnetworks at the edge of a network, and an intermediate network or links between two subnetworks of a communication system, to name but two. In addition, in multi-technology networks, intermediate networks are also capable of handling data traffic from multiple carriers and/or technologies. Thus, intermediate network capacity planning is a vital aspect of the construction, deployment and operation of a communication system.